David Mamet
David Mamet is an American playwright, screenwriter, and director known for sharp, profane dialogue and themes of masculinity, deception, and American ambition.
His plays include *Glengarry Glen Ross* and *American Buffalo*; his screenplays include *The Verdict* and *Wag the Dog*. "Mamet-speak" describes his distinctive rapid-fire, overlapping dialogue style marked by repetition and interruption.
Short, separated note style
- profanityVulgar or obscene speech
- subtextImplicit meaning beneath words
- rhythmPatterned stress and silence
- pausesTemporary cessations of activity
interruption · overlap · obscenity · cadence · vernacular · naturalism · realism · confrontation
Manhattan theatrical district
- off-BroadwaySmaller-scale New York theater
- ensembleUnified group or outfit
- rehearsalPre-performance practice session
- SteppenwolfCentral Asian wild canine
New York · London · revival · production · staging · William H. Macy
Male gender characteristics
- deceptionIntentional misleading of others
- con artistrySkilled fraudulent manipulation
- capitalismPrivate profit-based economy
- salesmanshipArt of persuading buyers
corruption · morality · betrayal · power · greed · competition · American Dream · business ethics
Mamet's salesmen tragedy
Mamet's salesmen tragedy
- 1984Dystopian surveillance state tale
- awardHonor given for merit
- recognitionPerceiving something as known
- honorHigh regard, moral dignity
Vanished trucking union chief
- The UntouchablesUnbribable law enforcement team
- HannibalCarthaginian military commander
- directingOverseeing a production
- noirHard-boiled film genre
con game · twist ending · double-cross · thriller · crime · neo-noir
staccato
Short, separated note style
- profanityVulgar or obscene speech
- subtextImplicit meaning beneath words
- rhythmPatterned stress and silence
pauses · interruption · overlap · obscenity · cadence · vernacular · naturalism · realism · confrontation · manipulation
Broadway
Manhattan theatrical district
- off-BroadwaySmaller-scale New York theater
- ensembleUnified group or outfit
- rehearsalPre-performance practice session
Steppenwolf · New York · London · revival · production · staging · William H. Macy
masculinity
Male gender characteristics
- deceptionIntentional misleading of others
- con artistrySkilled fraudulent manipulation
- capitalismPrivate profit-based economy
salesmanship · corruption · morality · betrayal · power · greed · competition · American Dream · business ethics · hustling
Glengarry Glen Ross
Mamet's salesmen tragedy
Glengarry Glen Ross
Mamet's salesmen tragedy
- 1984Dystopian surveillance state tale
- awardHonor given for merit
- recognitionPerceiving something as known
Hoffa
Vanished trucking union chief
- The UntouchablesUnbribable law enforcement team
- HannibalCarthaginian military commander
- directingOverseeing a production
noir · con game · twist ending · double-cross · thriller · crime · neo-noir
- PlaywrightsWilliam Shakespeare, Shakespeare, Anton Chekhov, Chekhov, Ibsen
- Modern DramaHenrik Ibsen, modern theater, modern tragedy, social drama, psychological drama
- Pulitzer WinnersToni Morrison, Ernest Hemingway, William Faulkner, John Steinbeck, Harper Lee
- Broadwaymusicals, musical, Tony Award, musical theatre, theaters
- theaterplays, stage, play, onstage, acting
- Authors MHerman Melville, Toni Morrison, Cormac McCarthy, Margaret Mitchell, Henry Miller
David MametTennessee Williams
American Southern Gothic playwright
Oscar Wilde · August Wilson · Eugene O'Neill · Edward Albee · Anton Chekhov